It’s one thing to be on top of your bookings and be active on Facebook, but it’s another to proactively take your digital marketing to the next level. If you’re looking to ramp up your online marketing strategy, you’re not alone: 63% of businesses have increased their digital marketing budgets just this past year.
Here are some tips to help make it happen.
Hands-on digital marketing skills.
Digital marketing takes work, but it’s not rocket science. Many small business owners actively do their own marketing—after all, who knows your customers better than you?
Thankfully, you don’t have to go back to uni or even take a face-to-face course. If you’re ready to roll up your sleeves and get hands-on, there are plenty of online courses and articles to help familiarise yourself with the basics.
Yellow Pages’ Business Hub is a good example. Optimising your social media, CRM (customer relationship management) and SEO (search engine optimisation) are valuable skills to learn, and can make a huge difference in helping you reach your customers at the right time.
A strong email marketing strategy.
Small businesses in bigger cities benefit from foot traffic, and can take advantage of affordable offline marketing tactics in their local neighbourhoods. As a regional business, you’re often required to cover more ground than your city counterparts. Using email marketing platforms can help you stay connected with your customers.
When you’re building an email marketing plan, make sure to include relational emails (emails that don’t have a direct offer or promotion) to build your connection with customers, as well as promotional emails about your latest products and services.
RELATED: How to plan your email marketing campaigns for the year.
Local SEO.
Local SEO is all about tapping into the searches that people in your area are making through the use of relevant online content. For example, if someone searches for ‘florists near me’ you want your florist business to come up at the top of the results page, where it’s the most visible.
By having online business listings and creating location-specific content that is optimised for relevant keywords, you’ll increase the chances that customers in your location will find you any time they’re searching for products or services related to your business.
Start by doing some keyword research using a free tool such as Ubersuggest to find out what your potential customers are searching for. From there, think about the types of content you can create to utilise those keywords, while naturally including your business location.
For instance, if you’re a florist in Tamworth, you might create a blog post entitled ‘The best flowers in season in Tamworth right now’ and include a call-to-action at the bottom with your business name and contact details. Over time, develop a steady stream of locally relevant content and you’ll see your digital marketing efforts reach new heights.
RELATED: Why local SEO is worth the time and investment.
Mobile-friendly design.
Everyone browses the internet on their phone, but even more do it in regional areas. A study by the ACMA found that 15% of Aussies in regional areas exclusively use a mobile device for telecommunication, compared to 10% in capital cities.
When you’re catering to customers in regional areas, it’s important to optimise everything for mobile, from your website to your email newsletter templates. This will not only benefit you because this is where most Australians browse the internet, optimising your website for mobile can significantly improve how your website ranks in search engines as well.
A dedicated freelancer (or freelancers).
Freelancers or contractors are an effective way to bring extra hands on deck without breaking the bank.
Freelancers are great for regional businesses because they can work remotely, which means your access to marketing expertise isn’t limited to your local area. You can also pick and choose the freelancers based on the skills you need.
For example, maybe you need help running your search engine marketing campaigns but are happy to take charge of social media and email marketing. Or maybe you know what you want on your blog, and just need a wordsmith to craft it.
A marketing intern.
Today’s uni students are digital natives and well-versed in the latest digital platforms such as Photoshop and Instagram. Plus, they understand how customers use and consume content on social media. Interns can be a great asset, giving your business a fresh perspective that can take your marketing to the next level.
Most students are keen to get hands-on experience, and often it’s as simple as getting in touch with local universities or TAFE institutions to post up an ad for an internship. While you’ll still need to reimburse interns for their time, it won’t cost nearly as much as a seasoned pro. If you need more marketing help down the line, you could potentially bring on your intern part or full-time after they’ve finished their studies.
An expert digital marketing partner.
Contractors and freelancers offer specialised solutions to ramp up your digital marketing efforts. However, they’re generally not a full service shop. If you need something more comprehensive, it’s time to work with an expert across all areas of digital marketing.
Outsourcing parts of your digital marketing to a company like Yellow Pages means you get to work with a full service agency who understands every aspect of digital marketing. So even if you’re only interested in outsourcing your SEO, if you eventually want help with other digital marketing areas, it’s easy to integrate into your existing strategy as it’s all coming from the one expert service.
You can also benefit from economies of scale when you use an external agency to buy ads, as these companies have greater purchasing power.
If you need help with your digital marketing plan, Yellow Pages has you covered. We offer a full suite of products and services to take your digital marketing to the next level, from search engine marketing to social ads, to a listing on Yellow Pages Online. Get in touch with us today to find out how we can help you grow your business.
